Mexico president wants officials probed after drug boss Guzman's jailbreak

July 12, 2015 5:31 PM

Joaquín Archivaldo Guzmán Loera is the Mexican drug lord who heads the Sinaloa Cartel, a criminal organization named after the Mexican Pacific coast state of Sinaloa where it was formed.

Mexico president wants officials probed after drug boss Guzman's jailbreak

Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto said on Sunday he wants a full investigation into the jailbreak of drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman to uncover whether any public officials helped the kingpin escape.

Pena Nieto was flying to France on a state visit when news of Guzman's escape late on Saturday night broke. In a statement read out on Mexican local TV, Pena Nieto said he had confidence the country's security forces would recapture Guzman.

Joaquín Archivaldo Guzmán Loera is the Mexican drug lord who heads the Sinaloa Cartel, a criminal organization named after the Mexican Pacific coast state of Sinaloa where it was formed.

Known as "El Chapo Guzmán" for his 1.68 m (5 ft 6 in) stature, he became Mexico's top drug kingpin in 2003 after the arrest of his rival Osiel Cárdenas of the Gulf Cartel, and until his February 2014 arrest, he was considered the "most powerful drug trafficker in the world" by the United States Department of the Treasury.